Dave Copley: 'Amazing' legacy of Sheffield shopkeeper who helped dying patients record life stories

A flamboyant, fun-loving and generous Sheffield shopkeeper who gave his time to help dying patients record their life stories has left behind an 'amazing' legacy.

Dave Copley ran the fondly-remembered Boatworld boating supplies shop on London Road, along with the Funky Monkey and Fluid fashion stores, on Ecclesall Road and the city centre West One development respectively.

His family got in touch with The Star to pay tribute to the much-loved character who touched so many lives before his own was cut tragically short, after seeing him featured in a photo gallery of shopkeepers from the 90s and noughties.

His widow Jacqui Copley told how Dave was born in Sheffield but moved to Eyam in Derbyshire's Hope Valley as a boy with his family.

It was his dad Peter, a gifted sailor who passed on his passion to his sons Dave and Steve, who founded Boatworld in 1969 and opened the store at the old Wigfalls furniture dealers on London Road.

Dave initially trained to be a silversmith before joining the family business, along with Steve.

When Peter and his wife Jo retired and emigrated to Spain and South Africa, the brothers took over the firm, which initially sold boats and chandlery before diversifying to stock everything from surfboards and snowboards to the latest trends in clothing and footwear.

City centre fashion store

Dave launched a catalogue, which quickly grew from a slim eight pages to a weighty tome. He regularly travelled to the US to identify the latest innovations, which he described as 'game changers', and be the first to introduce them to the UK market. Being quick to move with the times, he also ensured Boatworld was among the first shops to create their own websites.

When Steve left the business to move into property development, Dave bought him out. He expanded his business empire by launching Funky Monkey and Fluid, the latter of which specialised in surf clothing and had a VW Campervan suspended from one of its walls.

Those shops didn't last too long, with the rapid growth of online shopping meaning most of their sales were being made online.

Boatworld's London Road store, at what is today The Stack Lounge sports bar, beside the Crown Inn, also closed. However, the business is still going strong 55 years after being founded and now makes its own boats, motors and much more, which it exports around the world.

In both work and at leisure, Jacqui explained, Dave was a larger than life character who lived life to the full.

'He was always about fun'

"He was always about fun," she said. "He was the most charismatic, gregarious visionary."

When Jacqui was diagnosed around nine years ago with bone marrow cancer, Dave became her career.

They spent a lot of time at Weston Park Hospital and at St Luke's Hospice, where Dave began volunteering as an oral historian, helping dying patients record their life stories for their families.

He got into dance music in his late 40s, and he and Jacqui began holidaying in Ibiza, where he celebrated his 60th birthday, to enjoy the rave scene there.

'He could charm the birds out of the trees'

When he and Jacqui met, he had three young daughters from his first marriage and she had two daughters of her own.

"We ended up bringing up five daughters between us and he was the only guy in a house full of six women, with only a male cat called Walter as his ally," she joked.

"Dave was so laid back and he dealt with all the traumas with amazing grace and calmness. He was such a cool guy. He could charm the birds out of the trees.

They had a pool at their house in Ecclesall and regularly hosted parties. With their five daughters, and their penchant for entertaining, Jacqui said their neighbours jokingly nicknamed them the 'Osbournes'.

Nicknames included 'Dave the Rave' and 'Daft Dave'

Dave, whose nicknames included Dave the Rave and Daft Dave, decided aged 60 that he wanted to learn guitar.

He quickly became proficient, so much so that he played at the Greystones pub and during lockdown would keep up spirits by performing for neighbours.

He was sadly diagnosed in September 2020 with advanced prostate cancer and he spent the last two months of his life at St Luke's, where Jacqui said the staff were 'amazing', before dying on November 30, 2022.

There was a huge turnout for his funeral at Hutcliffe Wood Crematorium and his family held a party in his honour, which they called Dave Fest.

"Dave's friends came and told funny stories about him. There were so many it could have gone on for days," said Jacqui.

"Lots of people came up to me at the funeral and said they were going to live their lives more like Dave. He was such a loving, caring, happy-go-lucky, incredible man.

"There's so much he's done. There's a massive hole in our lives but he's left an amazing legacy."

Chris Fry, who worked at Boatworld, told how Dave, along with his dad Peter and brother Steve, had done so much to help the next generation of sailors.

Store was 'haven of good vibes'

He described the store as a 'haven of good vibes', where you would meet 'all sorts of amazing people'.

"After uni I couldn't commit so much to regular Saturdays and now I spend my time as a solicitor in and out of court," he added.

"But if Boatworld could be recreated just as it was I would love to work there. Dave, Steve and their families remain part of my life now and helped me to become the person I am."

Dave is survived by Jacqui, his three daughters, Vix, Lizzie and Kate, his two stepdaughters, Nic and Alison, and his eight granddaughters, on whom he doted.

Anyone wishing to donate to St Luke's in his memory can do so at: www.stlukeshospice.org.uk.